Page 24 – Zinn Education Project

A confrontation between a policeman wielding a nightstick and a striker during the San Francisco General Strike, 1934.

May 9, 1934: Longshore Strike

Starting in the spring of 1934, longshoremen across every port on the West Coast struck against the unfair hiring tactics that they experienced daily.

May 8, 1959: Mexican American Communities Evicted

Palo Verde, La Loma, and Bishop were close-knit Mexican American communities that were destroyed in the 1950s to make way for Dodger Stadium.

May 8, 1858: John Brown and Constitutional Convention

John Brown, Martin Delany, and others gathered for a Constitutional Convention in Chatham, Canada.

May 7, 1955: Murder of Rev. George W. Lee

Rev. George W. Lee, one of the first African Americans registered to vote in Humphreys County since Reconstruction and head of the Belzoni, Mississippi NAACP, was murdered.

May 7, 1954: Viet Minh Victory

The Viet Minh scored their final victory over the French at Dien Bien Phu.

May 6, 1922: Gloria Richardson Born

Civil rights activist Gloria Richardson was born in Baltimore.

May 6, 1882: Chinese Exclusion Act Signed

The 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act was signed, prohibiting Chinese immigration to the United States.

Brown University students on strike in 1970, holding signs, protesting in a large crown on campus.

May 5, 1970: Brown University Student Strike

Students at Brown University went on strike to demand that the university take a stand against the escalation of the Vietnam War into neighboring Cambodia.

May 5, 1905: Chicago Defender Founded

Robert Sengstacke Abbott founded the highly influential newspaper, the Chicago Defender, with the tagline “American Race Prejudice Must Be Destroyed.”

May 5: Rethinking Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is actually the Battle of Puebla Day, commemorating the defeat of Napoleon III in 1862.

Indigenous delegate David Close meets with Pope Francis during the Long March to Rome and Delegation Lead to the Mission in Rome.

May 4, 2016: Indigenous People March to Demand Revocation of the Doctrine of Discovery

A delegation representing Native nations marched upon the Vatican and were successful in convincing the Vatican to revoke the Doctrine of Discovery.

May 4, 1970: Kent State Massacre

During an anti-war protest at Kent State University, the Ohio National Guard shot unarmed college students, killing four. Students were also killed at Jackson State (May 15, 1970), and Orangeburg (February 8, 1968).

Portrait of 7 of the 8 Haymarket Martyrs.

May 4, 1886: Haymarket Tragedy

A peaceful demonstration in Chicago for the eight-hour day ended in tragedy when the police barged in and a bomb exploded.

May 4, 1884: Ida B. Wells Protests Segregated Seating on Train

Ida B. Wells stood up to injustice by refusing to change seats on a segregated Chesapeake, Ohio & Southwestern Railroad train, leading to a legal battle over racially discriminatory laws.

May 3, 1919: Pete Seeger Born

Activist folksinger Pete Seeger was born in New York.

May 3, 1913: California’s Alien Land Law Enacted

California enacted the Alien Land Law to bar Asian immigrants from owning or leasing land. These restrictions, and others imposed later, remained in place through both World Wars.

May 3, 1898: Septima Clark Born

Educator and civil rights organizer Septima Clark was born in South Carolina.

May 2, 1963: Children of Birmingham Fill the Jails

In disciplined groups and singing freedom songs, students “ditch” class to march for justice and fill the jails.

May 1, 1970: D.C. Sanitation Worker Strike Begins

Amidst a looming “garbage crisis” in Washington, D.C., on May 1, 1970, 1,700 sanitation workers went on strike to demand an end to racial discrimination, unsafe working conditions, low pay, and unequal pick-up routes.

May 1: International Workers Day

International Workers’ Day began as a commemoration of the 1886 Haymarket massacre in Chicago.

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